Experiences of widowhood and beliefs about the mourning process of the Batswana people

Abstract

The loss of a partner is viewed by most authors as more serious than that of a parent or child, because of the closeness of the relationship between the husband and wife. In the South African context, and among the Batswana people in particular, widowhood is further complicated by their cultural beliefs and customs which may lead to a stressful experience for the widow. The focus of this study was on the Batswana people, the purpose of which was to explore and describe the widow’s experience of widowhood as well as the community’s beliefs about widowhood and the mourning process. The research was qualitative, explorative and descriptive. Data were collected by in- depth interviews with the widows as well as semi-structured interviews with community members. Participants were drawn from the Mafikeng, Lichtenburg and Zeerust area in the North West Province in South Africa. Data analysis was done by open coding as described by Tesch (Creswell, 1994:155). The findings of the widows’ experience of widowhood resulted in five major categories summarised as: experience of isolation due to stigmatisation of widowhood; a stressful life due to customs prescribed by society; hopelessness as a result of the loss of a husband; support provided by support systems; and over-responsibility. The community members’ beliefs resulted in four major categories, namely: perceptions about the effects of the mourning process; the community’s beliefs about the Batswana customs; the need to support the widow; and the mourning process as discrimination against women. Conclusions reached were that the widow is subjected to isolation, stigmatisation and stress whereas the commu- nity believes that the widow should follow culture in order to protect herself and the community. Guidelines were formulated for psychiatric nurses to facilitate the development of support mechanisms through which the commu- nity can be mobilised to assist the widow during widowhood and the mourning process.